Skip to main content

How Does the D.C. Circuit Cope with Hurricane Season?

By Robyn Hagan Cain on August 31, 2012 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

As Tropical Storm/Hurricane Isaac threatened the Republican National Convention in Tampa and battered New Orleans this week, we were reminded that it is once again hurricane season.

For the good folks on the Gulf Coast, hurricane preparations are a way of life. Growing up in Louisiana, we expected schools and government offices to close multiple times throughout the later summer/early fall. When we moved to D.C., government closures seemed like a thing of the past.

While hurricanes don't regularly flood the streets of the Capital, they do occasionally make their way to the Mid-Atlantic. (Remember last year's Hurricane Irene?) Rest assured, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has planned for such situations.

According to the circuit's website, if a determination is made that the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals will be closed to the public — or that the court schedule will be changed due to inclement weather or other emergency situation — that information will be available:

  • On the court's website: www.cadc.uscourts.gov
  • By recorded telephone message on the Clerk's Office Information Line: (202) 216-7000
  • By public broadcast on the following DC TV and radio stations: WRC/NBC (Channel 4), WTTG/FOX (Channel 5), WJLA/ABC (Channel 7), WUSA/CBS (Channel 9), and WTOP (103.5, 103.9, 107.7 FM)

Don't worry: You don't have to troll the public information avenues if you have business before the D.C. Circuit. Attorneys and pro se litigants scheduled to appear before the court will be contacted by the Clerk's Office in case of court closures.

If you want to follow the storm systems that could trigger the D.C. Circuit's inclement weather plan, check out the National Hurricane Center's website.

Related Resources:

Copied to clipboard